Glacier Change in a world of Climate Change

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Tasman Glacier Retreat

Update for 2/22/2011-the Tasman Glacier’s thin and weak terminus area, see in the GE image below, in Tasman Lake shed some large icebergs due to the earthquake generating some substantial waves in the lake. The post earthquake image with numerous fresh icebergs is the second below and is from the EPA. No word on the Hooker Glacier in the next valley west, which also calves into an expanding lake or Murchison Glacier in the next valley east. There is a Tasman Glacier update in 2013.. The New Zealand National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research has been examining the changes in volume and snowline on New Zealand Glaciers since 1977. This survey has concluded for 2009 they same observation as for 2007 and 2008, the glaciers are shrinking. An examination of the recent volume changes on the glacier indicate that the volume has been particularly negative since 1998.. This followed a period of relatively positive mass balance from 1990-1997, which made the New Zealand glaciers the least rapidly retreating glaciers in the world. For Tasman Glacier the retreat has been ongoing, the NWIA has noted a retreat of 180 m per year on average since the 1990’s. The proglacial lake at the terminus continues to expand as the glacier retreats upvalley. The lake is deep with most of the lake exceeding 100 metes in depth, and the valley has little gradient, thus the retreat will continue. It has been noted by researchers at Massey University that it is just to warm for the terminus area at 730 m to endure. Imagery of Tasman Glacier indicates the future it faces. There was no lake in 1973 and now it is more than 7 km long. The glacier appears quite rotten along the ice margin and poised for further retreat. The glacier drains a valley just east of the highest mountains in the range Mount Cook and Mount Tasman. . The image above has a blue line up the center of the glacier from the former terminus at the end of the lake too the head of the glacier. The upper image is from 2007 and the lower image from 2009. In the latter image the lake has expanded considerably. The disconnected lakes and debris covered ice on the left side-west side of the glacier has been replaced by all lake. Icebergs are afloat in this lake, they do not survive very long. The debris cover itself insulates the glacier ice from melting, slowing the process. However, the process due to the warmth and increased melting of the last decade has been increasing.
In the image below is a closeup of the section of ice that has now disintegrated, before it did. You can see the crevasses in some of the icebergs too. This is a rapidly changing environment due to the ongoing climate warming.